New York man accused of impersonating FBI agent to scam Massachusetts man out of $20,000

Police arrested a New York man recently after a Massachusetts resident was reportedly scammed out of thousands.

According to a police statement, the West Brookfield Police Department recently thwarted a brazen scam.

This organized transnational crime group zeroed in on the victim after he clicked on a malicious computer pop-up. They remotely locked his device and, posing as tech support then FBI agents, demanded $20,000 be deposited into a Bitcoin ATM to “unlock” it.

The victim attempted to comply but struggled with the machine. Seizing the opportunity, one scammer impersonating an FBI agent rushed to meet him and made off with $20,000 in cash. Undeterred, the gang determined on draining the victim’s life savings attempted to extort another $20,000 in cash later that same week.

Thankfully, the victim reached out to West Brookfield PD. With little time to prepare, officers sprang into action, setting up discreet surveillance and ambushing the fake “FBI agent” mid-attempted larceny.

WBPD arrested Yan Liang of Flushing, New York for a litany of charges including:

Attempted Larceny from a person over 60

Conspiracy

Impersonating a police officer

WBPD thanked their police partners at the Hardwick / New Braintree, Ma Police Department for their invaluable backup during Operation: Protect the Harvest.